?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F17725%2F&rft.title=The+Sustainable+Water-Energy+Nexus%3A+Life-Cycle+Impacts+and+Feasibility+of+Regional+Energy+and+Water+Supply+Scenarios&rft.creator=Dale%2C+Alexander+T.&rft.description=Water+and+energy+are+critical%2C+interdependent%2C+and+regional+resources%2C+and+effective+planning+and+policies+around+which+sources+to+use+requires+combining+information+on+environmental+impacts%2C+cost%2C+and+availability.+Questions+around+shifting+energy+and+water+sources+towards+more+renewable+options%2C+as+well+as+the+potential+role+of+natural+gas+from+shale+formations+are+under+intense+discussion.+Decisions+on+these+issues+will+be+made+in+the+shadow+of+climate+change%2C+which+will+both+impact+and+be+impacted+by+energy+and+water+supplies.+%0D%0AThis+work+developed+a+model+for+calculating+the+life-cycle+environmental+impacts+of+regional+energy+and+water+supply+scenarios+(REWSS).+The+model+was+used+to+discuss+future+energy+pathways+in+Pennsylvania%2C+future+electricity+impacts+in+Brazil%2C++and+future+water+pathways+in+Arizona.+To+examine+energy+in+Pennsylvania%2C+this+work+also+developed+the+first+process-based+life-cycle+assessment+(LCA)+of+shale+gas%2C+focusing+on+greenhouse+gas+(GHG)+emissions%2C+energy+consumption%2C+and+water+consumption.+This+LCA+confirmed+results+that+shale+gas+is+similar+to+conventional+gas+in+GHG+emissions%2C+though+potentially+has+a+lower+net+energy+due+to+a+wide+range+of+production+rates+for+wells.%0D%0ABrazil%E2%80%99s+electricity-related+impacts+will+rise+as+development+continues.+GHG+emissions+are+shown+to+double+by+2020+due+to+expanded+natural+gas+(NG)+and+coal+usage%2C+with+a+rise+of+390%25+by+2040+posssible+with+tropical+hydropower+reservoirs.+While+uncertainty+around+reservoir+impacts+is+large%2C+Brazil%E2%80%99s+low+GHG+emissions+intensity+and+future+carbon+emissions+targets+are+threatened+by+likely+electricity+scenarios.%0D%0APennsylvania%E2%80%99s+energy-related+impacts+are+likely+to+hinge+on+whether+NG+is+used+as+a+replacement+for+coal%2C+allowing+GHG+emissions+to+drop+and+then+plateau+at+93%25+of+2010+values%3B+or+as+a+transition+fuel+to+expanded+renewable+energy+sources%2C+showing+a+steady+decrease+to+86%25+in+2035.+Increased+use+of+biofuels+will+dominate+land+occupation+and+may+dominate+water+consumption+impacts%2C+depending+on+irrigation+%E2%80%93+water+consumption+for+energy+rises+from+7%25+to+18%25+under+the+base+case.+%0D%0AArizona+is+further+from+major+shale+basins%2C+but+aims+to+reduce+unsustainable+groundwater+usage.+Desalination+by+itself+will+increase+annual+impacts+by+at+least+2%25+in+all+impact+categories+by+2035%2C+and+prioritizing+renewable+energy+sources+along+with+desalination+was+found+to+lower+GHGs+by+1%25+from+BAU%2C+but+increase+2035+impacts+in+all+other+categories+by+at+least+10%25+from+new+construction+or+operation.+%0D%0AIn+both+PA+and+AZ%2C+changes+in+impacts+and+shifting+sources+have+interconnected+tradeoffs%2C+making+the+water-enegy+nexus+a+key+part+of+managing+environmental+problems+such+as+climate+change.+Future+energy+and+water+supplies+are+also+likely+to+show+higher+interdependencies%2C+which+may+or+may+not+improve+regional+sustainability.+This+work+offers+a+way+to+combine+four+important+sets+of+information+to+enable+the+generation+of+answers+to+key+regional+planning+questions+around+these+two+key+resources.&rft.date=2013-06-28&rft.type=University+of+Pittsburgh+ETD&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.language=en&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F17725%2F1%2Fdaleat_etd2013.pdf&rft.identifier=++Dale%2C+Alexander+T.++(2013)+The+Sustainable+Water-Energy+Nexus%3A+Life-Cycle+Impacts+and+Feasibility+of+Regional+Energy+and+Water+Supply+Scenarios.++Doctoral+Dissertation%2C+University+of+Pittsburgh.++++(Unpublished)++